The second article looking at YouGov’s UK alcoholic beverage rankings 2026 uses YouGov BrandIndex data to explore how consideration of beer, cider, spirits and liqueurs varies across generations.
How do alcohol brand preferences differ by generation?
YouGov’s data reveals that clear differences emerge when we look across brands that appear in at least one generation’s top 10.
Of all the brands in the rankings, Guinness is the most consistent leader. It ranks first across all four generations we looked at, with 30% consideration among Gen Z, 27% among both Millennials and Gen X and 28% among Baby Boomers+.
Smirnoff, however, has by far its strongest appeal among younger consumers. Its consideration stands at 26% with Gen Z – notably higher than among Millennials (15%), Gen X (12%) and Baby Boomers+ (8%).
Kopparberg also performs more strongly with younger groups. Its consideration is highest among Gen Z (25%) and Millennials (23%), with significantly lower appeal with Gen X (17%) and Baby Boomers+ (10%).
Peroni’s strength lies with older generations. Its consideration rises from 16% among Gen Z to 22% for Millennials before increasing to 27% with Gen X, and hitting 25% among Baby Boomers+.
Gen Z’s 10 most considered alcoholic beverage brands
Guinness is top of the tree among Gen Z, with 30% saying they would consider buying it. Smirnoff follows at 26%, with Kopparberg closely behind (25%). Corona ranks fourth at 21% with Old Mout following on 20%.
Inch’s Cider, Rekorderlig, Heineken, Thatchers and Baileys also make the Gen Z top 10.
It’s worth noting that the ranking includes several cider or fruit-cider brands, with Kopparberg, Old Mout, Inch’s Cider and Rekorderlig all appearing. Baileys is the only liqueur to make the Gen Z top 10.
Millennials’ 10 most considered alcoholic beverage brands
Guinness also ranks first among Millennials (with 27% consideration). Kopparberg is in second place on 23%, while Peroni ranks third at 22% and Birra Moretti is a close fourth on 21%.
The Millennial top 10 is rounded out by Rekorderlig, Corona, Heineken and Old Mout alongside Baileys and Thatchers.
The Millennial ranking has some overlap with Gen Z, but it’s worth noting that lager brands start to feature more prominently. Peroni and Birra Moretti both make the top half of the list – and rise further among Gen X.
Gen X’s 10 most considered alcoholic beverage brands
Among Gen X Guinness is again at the top of the list (27%) marginally ahead of Peroni (27%). Birra Moretti takes third spot with 25%, followed by San Miguel at 19% and Baileys (18%).
Stella Artois, Corona, Madri, Kopparberg and Thatchers complete the Gen X top 10.
Compared to the lists for younger generations, the Gen X ranking is more lager-led. Peroni, Birra Moretti, San Miguel, Stella Artois, Corona and Madri all appear, while Kopparberg and Thatchers keep cider represented.
Baby Boomers+’ 10 most considered alcoholic beverage brands
Guinness takes a clean sweep by leading consideration among Baby Boomers+ (28%). Peroni ranks second at 25%, followed by Birra Moretti on 20%, San Miguel (19%) and Stella Artois on 17%.
The top ten is rounded out by Thatchers, Baileys, Gordon, Bombay Sapphire and Hobgoblin.
Compared with younger groups, the Baby Boomers+ list includes several brands that do not appear in the Gen Z top 10, including the two gins – Gordon’s and Bombay Sapphire – as well as Hobgoblin, the beer.
Across the generational rankings, Guinness leads every age group. Baileys and Thatchers also appear in all four top 10s, but the brands competing beneath Guinness change meaningfully by generation.
As the data shows, a strong overall position can mask differences between audiences, while brands further down the overall ranking can have specific strength with a specific generation.
Request an alcoholic beverage brand briefing to explore how consideration changes across generations, competitors and additional BrandIndex metrics.
Methodology
This article draws on UK YouGov BrandIndex data collected from September 1, 2025 to August 31, 2026 among UK adults aged 18+ in Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers+ (n>2,464).
Consideration is the percentage of respondents who would consider a brand the next time they are in the market to purchase alcoholic beverages. This analysis includes brands from the beer/cider and alcoholic beverages sectors.
The generational comparison chart uses the top 10 brands across Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers+, sorted by average consideration across the four generations. The separate generation charts rank brands independently within each generation.
Separately tracked consumer-facing brands owned by Pernod Ricard remain eligible where they appear as BrandIndex brands.
Figures are rounded to nearest whole number.
Disclosure: The data analysis in this article was conducted by YouGov with the assistance of AI tools.
About YouGov BrandIndex
YouGov BrandIndex is an always-on, daily brand tracking tool that measures consumer perceptions of thousands of brands across sectors and markets. BrandIndex helps marketers monitor brand health, benchmark competitors, identify audience-specific strengths and weaknesses, and understand how perceptions change over time
Explore more alcoholic beverage brand data
This generational ranking is one view of the broader alcoholic beverage data available in YouGov BrandIndex. Additional analysis can include competitor benchmarks, year-on-year movement, brand-health metrics, audience cuts and deeper category views.
Request an alcoholic beverage brand briefing to explore the brands, competitors and audiences that matter most to your team.
